Independence and Interdependence in Early Childhood Services

Abstract

It is through culture that children make sense of their worlds (Trevarthen, 1998). Cross-cultural models show that families are likely to primarily foster either independence or interdependence in their children (Gonzalez-Mena, 1997; Greenfield, 1994). Young children are likely to pay the ‘price of acculturation’ when they enter early childhood services which have values and practices which are not consistent with those of their family and cultural heritage (Greenfield, Quiroz & Raeff, 2000). The purposes of this paper are to outline some key ideas and issues pertaining to culture and children's development, and to offer some suggestions about how early childhood settings can support children's cultural heritages.